Westward Dharma: Buddhism beyond Asia

Description

The first authoritative volume on the totality of Buddhism in the West, Westward Dharma establishes a comparative and theoretical perspective for considering the amazing variety of Buddhist traditions, schools, centers, and teachers that have developed outside of Asia. Leading scholars from North America, Europe, South Africa, and Australia explore the plurality and heterogeneity of traditions and practices that are characteristic of Buddhism in the West. This recent, dramatic growth in Western Buddhism is accompanied by an expansion of topics and issues of Buddhist concern. The contributors to this volume treat such topics as the broadening spirit of egalitarianism; the increasing emphasis on the psychological, as opposed to the purely religious, nature of practice; scandals within Buddhist movements; the erosion of the distinction between professional and lay Buddhists; Buddhist settlement in Israel; the history of Buddhism in internment camps; repackaging Zen for the West; and women's dharma in the West. The interconnections of historical and theoretical approaches in the volume make it a rich, multi-layered resource.

About Author

Charles S. Prebish is Professor of Religious Studies at Pennsylvania State University and author and editor of numerous works, including Luminous Passage: The Practice and Study of Buddhism in America (California, 1999), A Survey of Vinaya Literature (1994), and American Buddhism (1979). He is coeditor of The Faces of Buddhism in America (California, 1998) and the electronic Journal of Buddhist Ethics. Martin Baumann is Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Lucerne, Switzerland, and research fellow in the Department of Religious Studies at Hannover University, Germany. He is the author of Diaspora: Hindus and Trinidad (2002), Migration, Religion, Integration (2000), and Deutsche Buddhisten: Geschichte and Gemeinschaften (1993). He is also coeditor of Religions fo the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices (2002). Prebish and Buamann are coeditors of the electronic Journal of Global Buddhism (http://www.globalbuddhism.org).

Contents

List of Tables Introduction: Paying Homage to the Buddha in the West Martin Baumann and Charles S. Prebish PART I: PROFILING GLOBAL BUDDHISM: A DESCRIPTION OF THE LANDSCAPE 1. Who Is a Buddhist? Night-Stand Buddhists and Other Creatures Thomas A. Tweed 2. The Spectrum of Buddhist Practice in the West B. Alan Wallace 3. Protective Amulets and Awareness Techniques, or How to Make Sense of Buddhism in the West Martin Baumann 4. Studying the Spread and Histories of Buddhism in the West: The Emergence of Western Buddhism as a New Subdiscipline within Buddhist Studies Charles S. Prebish PART II: DIFFUSION: THE HISTORIES OF BUDDHISM IN WESTERN COUNTRIES 5. Buddhism in Europe: Past, Present, Prospects Martin Baumann 6. American Buddhism in the Making Richard Hughes Seager 7. Buddhism in Canada Bruce Matthews 8. The Development of Buddhism in Australia and New Zealand Michelle Spuler 9. Buddhism in South Africa Michel Clasquin 10. Buddhism in Brazil and Its Impact on the Larger Brazilian Society Frank Usarski 11. Buddha in the Promised Land: Outlines of the Buddhist Settlement in Israel Lionel Obadia PART III: CHANGE: ADAPTATIONS AND INNOVATIONS 12. Camp Dharma: Japanese-American Buddhist Identity and the Internment Experience of World War II Duncan Ryuken Williams 13. The Translating Temple: Diasporic Buddhism in Florida Douglas M. Padgett 14. Repackaging Zen for the West David L. McMahan 15. Scandals in Emerging Western Buddhism Sandra Bell PART IV: LIFESTYLE: BEING A BUDDHIST IN WESTERN SOCIETIES 16. The Challenge of Community Ajahn Tiradhammo 17. Buddhist Nuns: Changes and Challenges Karma Lekshe Tsomo 18. Neither Monk nor Nun: Western Buddhists as Full-Time Practitioners Sylvia Wetzel 19. Virtues without Rules: Ethics in the Insight Meditation Movement Gil Fronsdal PART V: BUDDHISM FACING NEW CHALLENGES 20. The Roar of the Lioness: Women's Dharma in the West Judith Simmer-Brown 21. Engaged Buddhism: Agnosticism, Interdependence, Globalization Christopher S. Queen 22. The Encounter of Buddhism and Psychology Franz Aubrey Metcalf 23. A "Commodius Vicus Recirculation:: Buddhism, Art, and Modernity Ian Harris Bibliography List of Contributors Index